


Not So Simple

by makemeanybraver



Series: Pride 2020 [2]
Category: Good Girls (TV)
Genre: Angst, F/F, Platonic Cuddling, Postpartum Depression
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-05
Updated: 2020-06-05
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:40:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,689
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24549280
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/makemeanybraver/pseuds/makemeanybraver
Summary: Nancy struggles with postpartum depression. Annie comforts her through the motions.
Relationships: Annie Marks/Nancy
Series: Pride 2020 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1770304
Comments: 3
Kudos: 6





	Not So Simple

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Krishawndalyn Clark](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Krishawndalyn+Clark).



After around minute forty of rocking and singing, the baby in Nancy's arms finally stopped crying. Dakota went from screaming, to wailing, to gently weeping, and finally sleeping. Once he stopped, Nancy stood up from the rocking chair and carefully put him in his crib. As she looked down at him, wrapped in a baby blue blanket, his fists tightly clenched, tears started rolling down Nancy's face. She felt them physically first. The emotional pain didn't strike her until a moment later. A deep sense of sorrow hung in her chest. Tearing herself away from the crib, Nancy grabbed the baby monitor before scurrying out of the room and dropped to her knees in the hall. With her hands in her lap, the monitor falling a few inches away from her, she started sobbing on the ground. It felt like being outside of yourself, and looking down at you, in a mess on the floor, wailing for no reason. Her shoulders shook violently while she cried and she stayed down there for almost a minute before going out to her living room. She grabbed a tissue and blew her nose, but didn't wipe her cheeks because she felt like the tears had not stopped just yet. Of course, she was not thinking rationally about anything because this was the third sob fest she has had this week. With Gregg out of the house until tomorrow afternoon, she didn't know how she would cope with it, whether she would just cry until she couldn't anymore or whether she would go shake Dakota if he didn't sleep through the night. Usually Gregg did an okay job of calming her down, which was nice of him, despite everything.

Nancy picked up her cell phone and called Annie because she was the only other person she was minimally comfortable being this vulnerable in front of. She was fully expecting Annie not to even pick up the call, so she didn't try to hold back her tears while on the phone. When Annie picked up, all she heard was Nancy quietly crying on the other end. After asking what was wrong three times and begging Nancy to speak, she sucked in her breath and sniffled. "Can you come over? Please, please, I didn't know who else to call. Please, you have to come. You have to, you have to," Nancy begged over and over.

"Hey, Nance, it's okay. It's okay, I'll go. I'll be there soon, okay?" Annie responded hastily. She didn't particularly want to go because they were not friends. But lately Annie's had to live with a guilty conscience regarding all her past misgivings. Not all of them involved Nancy, but a few of them definitely did. So when someone whose life she has personally ruined calls her crying as if they saw a ghost or a murder, Annie thought answering the call might earn her back some good karma points. Annie turned the tv off, then went over to Ben's room to check if he was still awake, and he was, reading a book at his desk.

"Hey, sweetie, I... I have to go help Nancy," she said, fully not believing what she was saying.

"Don't call me that mom," Ben said, annoyed, not even lifting his eyes from his book. "What does Nancy need you for anyway?" he wondered.

"Hey... People need me, alright? Anyway, she sounded very... Distressed. I gotta go. You'll be alright on your own?" she asked.

"I'm thirteen, I'll be fine," he said dismissively. Annie clenched her jaw before stomping away.

"Okay, bye honey. Love you," she yelled mockingly as she picked up her keys and went to the door.

"Whatever! I love you too!" he yelled back as Annie put her boots on. She smiled before leaving.

\---

The air was frigid outside so Annie really didn't like Nancy for making her wait an obscenely long time before she opened the door. But that wasn't the right foot to start off on. Maybe Annie had to learn when to take the high road on these sorts of things. Nancy heard the ring of the doorbell and she honestly tried to move but it was like her body was betraying her. Not giving her the energy she needed to simply lift herself up off the couch and go to the door. It took a moment of serious, deep thought. Yelling at herself for being so weak and exposing herself like this. The part of her brain that was polite and cared too much what people thought convinced her to move and rescue Annie from the cold instead of yelling at her through the door to go back home.

"Hey, Nance, you want to tell me what's going?" Annie said in a stern and defensive tone, but not trying to give too much anger. Annie walked past her and pulled off her beanie and scarf. She took a seat on the couch and patted the spot next to her. Nancy closed and locked the door again, then went and took that spot. She slumped over her shoulders, wrapped her arms around her knees, made herself look so small.

"I feel so useless. He cries and it takes me half an hour to find out what he wants. I give it to him and it takes him another half hour to be satisfied with it. And then, an hour later, he wants more and more and more," Nancy whined, looking down at her feet. She felt Annie's hand on her back, rubbing up and down to comfort her.

"I read about this... In all the books. But I didn't think it would happen to me because I wanted him so bad. We tried so hard to make it happen. Now that he's here, I don't feel happy... I just feel so... Exhausted..." she said as she started crying all over again, putting her face in her hands. Nancy slowly inched closer and closer to Annie until she was fully leaning up against her and crying on her shoulder. "And I can't stop doing this. Every night I cry myself to sleep," she whined softly, taking in a gulp of air with every other word. Now, Annie put both arms around her and squeezed her while rubbing her thumbs against her arms. She thought very carefully of what to say. Saying that it happens to everyone didn't seem very useful. Saying that I know how you feel didn't seem very comforting. Then Annie realized that if Nancy really cried herself to sleep every night, she didn't need to say anything comforting. She just needed to be there. And listen.

"Why did Greg just go in the middle of all this?" Annie questioned out loud, slightly outraged with him that he would leave his wife alone for a night within a month of giving birth.

"He said it was work... But I really thought that he was with you," Nancy responded after sniffling loudly.

Annie scoffed. "No... No, absolutely not. I would never... I mean, not after your baby," she dispelled that rumor quickly. Annie was seriously doubtful that Greg needed to leave town for work right now. If she could guess, he simply was too weak to deal with Nancy's emotions and wanted to get away.

"What do you have that I don't?" Nancy whispered, not moving her head off of Annie's shoulders. Annie tried her best not to express she was offended by that comment, because this wasn't about her. Nancy took a deep breath before she spoke again. "I mean... I know you're so pretty, and fun, and like... Exciting. You know, but it was like that before. And if didn't work then, why now..." Nancy elaborated.

"Hey, Nance, you know maybe its not about me, or you, or even him, you know. Maybe its just... You know, life not being fair. And bad people not getting what they deserve. And innocent people being caught up in the storm of it all..." Annie said, hoping that what she said made any sense to Nancy who lived outside of Annie's head.

"And, you don't need me to tell you, but you're so pretty too. You're smart. You think ahead. You're a good person to my kid. I really appreciate that, and I think you'll be a good person to yours too," Annie whispered while rubbing Nancy's back softly. They sat quietly in silence while Nancy's tears slowly began drying up again, and Annie was really starting to feel the weight of Nancy against her.

"I think he's only with me still because of the baby," Nancy whispered as she now clutched onto Annie's shirt.

"Oh... You don't know that..." Annie replied weakly, feeling so sorry that she messed up so majorly.

As if Nancy could read Annie's mind, she said, "And I think you're only here because you feel guilty." Annie made a tight grip on both of Nancy's arms and lifting her off, then looking into her eyes.

"Hey, I'm here because when a new mother calls you crying at 10pm... You just go. And you don't ask questions," Annie spoke seriously. "And, I'm not trying to make this awkward but... If you want me to hold you, maybe we can go to your bed... I mean, it's just really uncomfortable sitting on the couch," she said. Nancy finally looked up at her with the poutiest expression on her face. She nodded, stood up, grabbed the baby monitor, and slowly made her way to her bedroom. Annie followed an appropriate arms-length behind. Nancy got into bed first, laid her head down on her pillow and cuved her body into the fetal position, with her knees up to her chest.

"Nance, you know, since you're amazing with Ben, you love him, and you were taking good care of him between custody... I can help you. With Dakota. I mean, more often. If that's something you want," Annie whispered once she got in the bed, her chest up against Nancy's back and her arm around Nancy's stomach.

"That would be nice..." Nancy muttered as she nearly instantly went to sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked the story! I have ideas for ways to expand on this so I will be leaving it open for future chapters. However! For the next pride fic, I'll be doing a Good Girls/Shameless crossover. So that means you have two things to look foward to.


End file.
